John Milloy, director of Martin Luther University College's Centre for Public Ethics, in conversation with Akaash Maharaj, Ambassador-at-Large for the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption.

Third in a series on polarization: A conversation with Akaash Maharaj

Nelson Mandela Obituary SABC

Until November 2014, the last time I had played a musical instrument was more than two decades ago, in my compulsory high school music class.  I was assigned the oboe, which I imagine would be quite a beautiful instrument -- in someone else's hands.

The years since them have slipped by faster than I care to think, but I always harboured a desire to return to music through the piano, just for the pleasure of it.  I began my lessons in the autumn of last year, and can certainly attest that being an adult student is a humbling experience.

My first time playing in public was this past week, at the music festival in the small community of Renfrew, near my home in the Ottawa Valley.

I played Prelude 1 of Book 1 from JS Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier.  I selected this piece primarily because I have always enjoyed it, but also because I hoped that the regular geometry of the composition would place it within my modest abilities.

The festival asked pianists not to record their performances, and so this is a recording of one of my late practice sessions.  I realise that I play the piece much more briskly than is usual, and I will likely moderate my pace in the future.

Bach wrote that the pieces of The Well-Tempered Clavier were, “for the profit and use of musical youth desirous of learning”.  It has certainly been a while since I was a youth, and I have never been terribly musical, but I am desirous of learning.


The Well-Tempered Clavier, Prelude 1, Book 1

In 1962, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., soon to be Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, delivered a speech to the Harvard Law School forum.

Martin Luther King Jr., 1962 - Harvard Voices

We talk with Karim Bardeesy and Akaash Maharaj about the qualities of leadership during a time of crisis, and how to build a unifying vision around public policy that serves the common good. Bardeesy is the Executive Director of the Ryerson Leadership Lab and Maharaj is the CEO of the Mosaic Institute.

The Public Discourse - S1.EP 4 -  Leadership & Public Policy

Ambassador-at-Large for the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption.  Director of Policy for Nature Canada.  I also ride for Canada in equestrian sport, and write on statecraft and international affairs.

Visit my web site at www.Maharaj.org for everything you never wanted to know about me, and more!

The Well-Tempered Clavier, Prelude 1, Book 1

Akaash Maharaj

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